Some additional information on the Breitenstein and the
Dreipeterstein I promised earlier on.

Apologies in advance for possibly crooked English and/or wrong
translation from the French. I did my best.

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The Twelve Apostles' Stone

On the municipal territory [of Meisenthal], at the boundary with the
territory of Soucht, the Rocher des trois Pierre (the Dreipeterstein)
can be found. These are three blocks of red sandstone, carrying the
coats-of-arms of the dukes of Lorraine (but no-one ever was called
Pierre!), of the count of Hanau-Lichtenberg, and of the duke of
Nassau. Perhaps the remains of an ancient dolmen, they serve as a
boundary marker between the three territories. One kilometre from
here, the pierre des Douze-Apôtres (Breitenstein) is a nice example
of a christianised menhir. This splendid block of red sandstone, 4.4
metres tall, and 1 by 1.3 metre wide, marked in Roman ages the
boundary between the territories of the Médiomatriques (Belgian Gaul)
and the Triboques (Germania), and in the 17th century the boundary
between the duchy of Lorraine and the county of Hanau. Today it still
marks the boundary between the départements Moselle and Lower Rhine.
The Christ on the Cross with the two Maries in sorrow and the twelve
apostles were sculpted in the 18th century (1787). One of the sides
bears the cross of Lorraine, surmounted by the date of 1609.

From: Francis Kochert, Laurette Michaux Moselle [touristic guide of
the département], 1995, Ed. Casterman/Ed. Serpenoise, Tournai,
Belgium, p. 248.

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We leave Lemberg and cross shortly afterwards the Goetzenbruck,
or "Idols' Bridge". On the horizon, forested hills and humid valleys
deploy the magnificence of their savage attraction. In a bend of the
road, a column, placed on the grass, recalls that the road was built
under the Second Empire. Let us enter the undergrowth by this path,
watched over by nettles and the delicious settlings of raspberries.
We are on the departemental boundary of Moselle and Lower Rhine, at
the end of the municipal areas of Soucht and Meisenthal; one can see
all of a sudden, at the left of the path, three rocks of red
sandstone, resting in the grass. This site is known by the name of
Dreipeterstein, or "rocher des trois Pierre". The sandstone blocks
bear, respectively, the escutcheons of the duke of Lorraine, the
count of Hanau, and possibly that of the duke of Nassau, this last
coat-of-arms being too mutilated to be recognised with certainty. Why
these coats-of-arms in the middle of the forest? Why the name of
three Peters, that is given to this rocky ensemble?

Let us consider the interpretation that has been transmitted by the
oral tradition. The high and mighty sirs: the duke of Lorraine, the
duke of Nassau, and the count of Hanau had one day a memorable hunt,
hunting the deer, and all other sorts of game. The time came to have
some food, and all three stopped at the edge of their states to go
eating. These three stones served them as a table, and because every
stone stood on the territory of one of them, they could eat and talk
at ease, without leaving their domain. The escutcheons that are
carried by the stones attest the limit of their territories. As for
the first name Pierre: this was the first name common to the three
noble cavaliers. What to think of this fine coincidence?

The difficulty that results, is that there never has been a duke of
Lorraine bearing this first name. As for the famous meal: isn't this
also an embellishment? The peasants of the area loved to attribute to
the great sirs stories like that, the good parts nicely coloured.
Minstrels and troubadours enhanced it further in their beautiful
songs, that were well made for the purpose of helping to forget the
collective boredom, that befell the sombre castles in the wintertime.
So, what was reality? There was a time, in the high Middle Ages, that
the usage of Latin was gradually lost among the people. So in Latin
petra means "stone", a word that is translated into German as Stein.
Maybe the name Dreipeterstein doesn't mean anything else than "the
three stones", and the rest can be attributed to the legend, mixing
up first name and object? A text, dating back to 1170, conveying to
us the delimitation of the county of Bitche, tells us that, in this
advanced corner, it went up to "ad circulos". In fact, a circle of
small stones around the rocks has been found. The Dreipeterstein has
thus a very old significance as a border marker. The date of 1608, on
two of the stones, possibly reminds us of the boundary rectification
which was decided upon in 1606 between the duchy of Lorraine and the
county of Hanau. Without any doubt, an ancient druidic monument was
used, geographically well placed, in order to make the border of the
domains of these grand sirs visible. As for the name of the site,
Dreipeterstein, one cannot make a statement that is sufficiently
exact, the present state of knowledge about it being as it is. Was
there a confusion between several persons? Has the popular tradition
led to a simplification? Or do we have to move further on in time and
history? The reader can choose the hypothesis that is the most
seducing.

As it ought to be, we have left the best for last. On the road from
Goetzenbruck to Wimmenau one can soon find a large clearing, where a
crossroads is situated that marks the starting point of the road to
Althorn. In the centre of the crossroads, a stone monument is
erected, of which one is stunned to find it in such a good condition.
The people of the area give this stone the name of Breitenstein or
Pierre des Douze Apôtres. It is a block of red sandstone, 4 metres
and 40 centimetres tall from the ground, and carved 1 metre by 1.27 m
wide. Without any doubt this monument has been put there by the hand
of man, at a spot that was chosen out beforehand and for very precise
reasons. The souvenirs that are linked to it witness the passing of
several civilisations in this area.

The oral tradition tells us that the first purpose of this rock has
its roots in the age of the druids. This sort of menhir, placed,
indeed, in the middle of the forest, could have served as a stone of
sacrifice, or as a monumental witness erected to honour some deity.
Later on, the monolith marked, it is said, the place of the tomb of a
pagan general. Then came the slow christening of these Germanic
regions. The rock was "dechristened", following a fairly common
technique among the missionaries of Gaul, Germania, or Ireland, which
consisted of the retaining of all venerable objects of the ancient
cults, but giving them a Christian orientation all the same. Much
later on, the monument was completed; sculptures were executed at the
top of the rock: this is a group 1.50 m tall, representing Christ on
the cross, flanked by two Maries in sorrow, at his feet. Below this,
all around, the twelve apostles, in relief, three on every side, seem
to stand guard over the forest, watching the four horizons. These
sculptures are fairly late, since they were no doubt added in the
18th century, perhaps even in 1787, if one judges from the
inscription above this date. This inscription reproduces on four
lines the name of the twelve apostles, everything in Germanic
spelling. Some persons state that this embellishment of the stone was
made by a rich wine merchant from Ingwiller, who chose this way of
thanking God for a good business.

This curious stone leaves us quite a few other interesting details.
On the south side, one metre above the ground, one can recognise the
escutcheon of Lorraine, surmounted by the date 1609. Because it is
known that in the nearby forest a line of border markers, 1.36 metre
tall, 0.50 metre wide, and 0.32 metre thick, can be found, one can
think that the Breitenstein, this Lata Petra which the ancient Latin
texts mention, also takes its place in the boundary line. This line
of markers limits indeed, since 1606, the domains of the dukes of
Lorraine and the counts of Hanau, like we have seen in the case of
the Dreipeterstein. In our days, the boundary of the municipalities
still follow the old feudal track. These scattered stones, standing
at fixed intervals in the forest, carry on the side that faces Bitche
the coat-of-arms with the cross of Lorraine, with the word Lothring
on top and the date 1605 underneath. On the opposite side, one can
see the escutcheon of Hanau, well recognisable for its three
chevrons. The markers are well visible and one can follow them for
six kilometres, from the Bannstein to the height of mount Rothenberg.

The Breitenstein, an indestructible witness of the past, is a legend
of the old ages, that has seen much and that remembers. Since the
times that it guarded the boundary between Belgian Gaul and Germanic
Gaul, how many men, tribes, and people have contemplated it!
Melanchton, the preferred disciple of Luther, is said to have
preached the Reformation here at the crossroads, and one may think he
did it with success, since almost all villages in the valley have a
vast protestant majority. In 1793, when Hoche had to come to the
rescue of the French troops and to take into his hand the operations
of the Moselle Army, it was here that he established his general
quarters. His letter to general Pichegru remains famous for the
dynamic spirit it contains: "I am occupying the position at
Breitenstein that I have to give over to you; it is beyond La Petite
Pierre. Attack tomorrow at five in the morning. March mainly onto
Saverne, so that they don't turn to Bitche in force. I will not
change any of my preparations, unless I am forced to do so by the
circumstances. So, I am warning you. It will go. Tomorrow, I will say
to you: it goes; and the 28th: it goes and it will be gone!"

Amongst the gatherings for which this stone has served as a rallying
sign, there is one that has continued very long, until the last
decades: that of the Gypsies. Every year, the 15th of August, the
Gypsy tribes gathered here, having made a trip of which the length
and the conditions make us shiver nowadays; there were more than two
thousand here in the years before the second world war.

Since the nocturnal rallies of the druids who, armed with their
pruning knives, went to cut the mistletoe here; since the profound
troubles that brought about the migration of the nations; since the
tenacious efforts of the missionaries of the cross, what a path has
been travelled! The middle ages, that crowned the smallest rocky
ridge with proud burghs, has spared the Breitenstein. The modern age
has turned it into an arbiter, by imprinting the seal of the dukes of
Lorraine upon it. However, is perhaps not the real significance of
this memorable stone, that has escaped so many troubles: to be a
witness that beyond the partisan struggles, the only thing that
should be safeguarded in the end is perhaps the unchanging wisdom of
these landscapes that are thousands of years old.

From: Bernard Robin, Manteau de grès, dentelles de sapin, 1992, Ed.
Serpenoise, Metz, pp. 47-50

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Twelve Apostles' Stone Mouterhouse

Additional information given to me by the tourist office in
Bitche/Bitsch:

The monument is mentioned in 713 by the name of "Lata petra". In 1170
it served as a boundary marker between the Alsace and Lorraine.
On the south face of the block, an escutcheon of Lorraine, surmounted
by the date 1609 was carved at the orders of the governor of
Bitche/Bitsch. This confirms its rôle in the boundary demarcation
made to delimit the domains of the dukes of Lorraine and the counts
of Hanau.

This information I got on a xerox, obviously from a book, but I don't
know which book it's from.

This is all the written information I have. Some more pictures, and a
scan of my 1:25000 topo map I have, will follow (shortly, I hope).

Peter S.